2019 General Election Postponement: Economic Implications

Following the postponement of the 2019 General Elections on
Saturday, 16th February 2019, Business Insider, Sub-Saharan Africa
looks at four economic implications of the postponement on the nation, the
individual and the economy.

1. Increased economic uncertainty

The postponement of the elections will further keep investors
away from the Nigerian market as fear and uncertainty about the country's
economic and political direction linger. This will also discourage investment
and bring adverse effect to the nation’s stock market.

2. Overbearing costs

Individual spending has increased in the last two days. Many
have gone to filling stations and supermarkets to stock up for the election
weekend, while some have travelled out of their places of residence to their
constituencies where they are registered to vote.

Journalists, international correspondents, and election
observers have spent thousands of dollars travelling to and around Nigeria to
cover the elections and observe polling activities.

For instance, a return flight for a UK journalist to cover
Nigeria election will cost them about N400,00 (more than £800) while hotel
accommodation for up to a week in a Lagos hotel could cost up to N35,000 (£75)
per night. Add to that an average per diem of $500 for 3-4 days and you will
get a sense of just how much could have been expended on covering the elections
originally scheduled for February 16.

Every Saturday, hundreds, maybe thousands, of people get
married across the country. Those who might have scheduled their weddings for
the week after the elections will now have to reschedule them, bearing
unforeseen costs that might greatly affect their finances in the process.

3. Companies’ strategies at risk

Some companies have tied their spending and 2019 strategies
around the Saturday, February 16 and March 2, 2019, initial election dates,
spending millions of Naira. Adjusting to the new dates will not only affect
company finances, but it will have some effects on employee morale going into
the new week, further harming the companies’ productivity levels.

Last week, Nigeria fully recovered from its worst economic
recession as the GDP growth recorded a remarkable 1.93% in 2018, thanks to the
activities and spending of private organisations. It will be important to note
how these activities will be impacted in the coming weeks.

4. Waste of national resources

INEC’s budget for the election year is roughly 189
billion Naira. It is safe to say that a large chunk of that budget that has
already been expended on logistics in preparation for elections on February 16
has gone to waste, never to be recouped.

INEC will also need to make adjustments to already incurred
costs, almost doubling costs.